Wednesday 27 October 2010

Kindle News Roundup & 2 free books

Hi everyone, here's a mid-week news roundup and some free books to keep you occupied. Enjoy!

Amazon Kindle book sales
Amazon announced this week that they are selling more Kindle editions of their books than hardback and paperback books COMBINED for their top 1000 bestsellers - in some cases the ratio is as great as 2:1.

Steven Kessel, senior Vice President of Amazon Kindle, said: "For the top 10 bestselling books on Amazon.com, customers are choosing Kindle books over hardcover and paperback books combined at a rate of greater than 2 to 1.  Kindle books are also outselling print books for the top 25, 100, and 1,000 bestsellers—it's across the board."

Free Sponsored PDF books at Wowio.com
This site appears to be offering free books supported by ads. Now, the ads aren't randomly splashed over your book, instead they are only on the cover. Nice. These are PDF downloads.

2 free books:

1. Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One
Rating: 3 stars average of 17 reviews
Synopsis: "The first in a series that follows "Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy" from their wedding day into married life, as the author vividly imagines this young and energetic couple as they immerse themselves in their profound love and face the challenges of their era. Elizabeth and Darcy adore each other and the burgeoning love and closeness between them drives the plot. As the narrative unfolds through the honeymoon and then the challenges of Elizabeth assuming the role of Mistress of Pemberley, Darcy and Elizabeth thoroughly reveal their differing points of view of how their relationship blossomed from misunderstanding to perfect understanding. As the couple grows in maturity and understanding, as they accustom themselves to each other and to married life, "Two Shall Become One" emerges as a fascinating portrait of a deep and passionate marriage."

2. To Conquer a Highlander
Synopsis: "When Torin McLeren discovers his neighbor’s plot against his king, he takes their daughter as his prisoner, thereby stopping her father’s plot from going forward. But that leaves him with a woman under his roof whom he can’t ignore, and not just because she’s his enemy’s daughter…A woman who’s as much trouble as she is temptation…Shannon McBoyd decides to use her captor to experience passion for the first time, and then to destroy him. But her plan goes awry because once she has lured Torin into her bed, she no longer wants to hurt the one man who seems to value and understand her…Even if her father will kill him—and her—when he discovers what they’ve done..."



1 product to consider:
1. iPod Touch 8GB - £184.95 - £15 discount = £169.95 (vs £189.99 RRP)
Amazon has Kindle apps available for the iPod Touch and Apple has recently released the latest model which has two cameras, a high-resolution screen, facetime video chat and thousands of games. You can also read your Kindle books on the iPod Touch without having to pay for them again - so waiting in a queue? Why not pop out your iPod and read for a bit.

I normally wouldn't be promoting such a far out of Kindle product BUT Amazon currently has £15 off the iPod Touch, so if you are looking for a good deal for yourself or in getting an early Christmas present this is your chance. This promotion expires at midnight, November 2nd 2010. Use the promo code "ITOUCH10" to get the £15 discount. If you want to grab one click here.

I'll see you during the weekend for some more Great Kindle Deals! Thanks for subscribing.

Sunday 24 October 2010

Some great free Kindle books (grab them quick) - GreatKindleDeals 23 October 2010

Welcome to this week's newsletter round-up. There's been a lot of news out this week, in case you have missed out on any: read about the 3.0.3 preview update here; and about lending books to your friends here and magazines and newspaper coming to Kindle apps here.

So, now that you're bang up to date, let's dive right in:

Free:
1. The Dying Game 
Rated 4.5 stars average from 3 reviews


Synopsis: "WHEN A SHOCKING SCANDAL EXPOSES SOUTHERN SECRETS?
As the blazing heat of summer gives way to sultry September, a shroud of suspicion settles over Noble?s Crossing, a sleepy Alabama town. Nothing is as it seems?and never will be again. Lane Noble Graham stands accused of murdering her ex-husband. And the one man who can help, Johnny Mack Cahill, vowed never to return to the town that scorned him?or the woman whose love he knew he didn?t deserve."

2. Lullaby
Rated 4.5 stars average from 19 reviews

Synopsis: "What should have been a happy family day out quickly becomes a nightmare! The chilling debut from a bright new talent. What should have been a happy family day out quickly turns into a nightmare for Jess Finnegan. One minute she is thankful for a few minutes' peace away from the demands of motherhood. The next she is frantically searching for husband Mickey and 8-month old Louis.They have disappeared, nowhere to be seen. As the police launch a massive manhunt, Jess's panic intensifies. Then Mickey is found, badly beaten -- and alone. Where is Louis? Is he still alive? Could he be the victim of child trafficking or something much closer to home? Just how well does Jess know her new husband? And when her wayward brother turns up out of the blue, what is he after? As the investigation unravels, Jess discovers that the people closest to you are not always what they seem!"

3. City of Fear

Rated 3.5 stars average from 6 reviews.

Synopsis: "The breakout novel from the highly acclaimed thriller writer delves into the underworld of the Manhattan nightclub scene. In a city full of victims, it's murder to choose just one...Chelsea Hart, a fresh-faced Indiana college student, spends the final night of her spring break in the VIP room of an elite New York City nightclub with her girlfriends and a fake ID. The next morning, joggers find her in East River Park, her celebrated blonde hair hacked off. NYPD Detective Ellie Hatcher catches the case and quickly homes in on a group of privileged men who were last seen partying with Chelsea. When a tight case is built against a young hedge fund manager, the department is elated. But Ellie has her doubts. Chelsea's murder is eerily similar to three other deaths that occurred a decade ago: the victims were young, female, and in each case, the killer had taken her hair as a souvenir. Ellie's search for the truth pits her against her fellow cops and places her under the watchful eye of of a psychopath eager to add the prideful young detective to his list..."

This is your newsletter so we'd like to hear what you want to read about - do you have any Kindle related questions, want to see anything added to the newsletter, have feedback or comments? Email us at greatkindledeals@gmail.com or simply reply to this email.

If you'd like to support the blog, please consider subscribing and getting this newsletter delivered straight to your Kindle for only 6p a day here.

Thanks for subscribing. See you next week.

Friday 22 October 2010

"Lend books to your friends" - coming soon to Kindle

Amazon today announced that they will soon be offering the ability to lend books to your friends for up to 14 days providing that the book publishers allow this. this feature is already available on the Nook e-book reader. A firmware upgrade will most likely be needed for this feature to be enabled.

This will be available to book Kindle users and Kindle app users on other platforms. The feature is to come later this year.

Amazon said: "We will be introducing lending for Kindle, a new feature that lets you loan your Kindle books to other Kindle device or Kindle app users. Each book can be lent once for a loan period of 14-days and the lender cannot read the book during the loan period. Additionally, not all e-books will be lendable - this is solely up to the publisher or rights holder, who determines which titles are enabled for lending. "

Amazon also announced that "we are making Kindle newspapers and magazines readable on our free Kindle apps, so you can always read Kindle periodicals even if you don't have your Kindle with you or don't yet own a Kindle. In the coming weeks, many newspapers and magazines will be available on our Kindle apps for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, and then we'll be adding this functionality to Kindle for Android and our other apps down the road. Our vision is Buy Once, Read Everywhere, and we're excited to make this possible for Kindle periodicals in the same way that it works now for Kindle books. More details when we launch this in the coming weeks."

Tuesday 19 October 2010

A nice selection of free books

Here's your weekly roundup of the latest free and cheap books - grab them quick as they disappear quickly (this week they're direct from Amazon UK):

Free Books:
1. Bit Literacy: Productivity in the Age of Information and E-mail Overload
Rated 5 stars from 2 Reviews
"Bit Literacy offers a solution to email overload, media overload, and other kinds of information overload. The daily flood of e-mail, multiple todo lists, a cluttered desktop, documents in various file formats, and the constant distraction of cell phones are all problems that people desperately need help with. More than a quick fix or another "how-to" guide, Bit Literacy offers an entirely new way of gaining productivity, and lowering stress, that users at any level of expertise can put into action right away. Mark Hurst - who has reached hundreds of thousands of readers through his Good Experience blog and Uncle Mark guides, has revealed the way to survive, and thrive, in the digital age: "Let the bits go."

2. Fallen Idols
Rated 4.5 stars from 12 reviews
"Everyone would kill for their fifteen minutes of fame! A Premiership footballer is shot dead in cold blood on a busy London street, and a country is gripped by terror. Who is behind this apparently motiveless killing -- and who's next in the firing line? Jack Garrett is determined to find out. A small-time journalist who's left behind his Lancashire roots for the glitz and glamour -- and seediness and squalor -- of the capital, he's convinced this is no celebrity stalker. Aided and abetted by DC Laura McGanity, desperately trying to juggle police life with motherhood and her feelings for Jack, the trail takes them back to Jack's home town of Turner's Fold -- and his past. What's the connection between the recent murder and the death of a young girl 10 years before? Conspiracy, revenge and the high price of fame all combine in this stunning debut from a dazzling new voice in crime fiction."

3. The Ride of My Life
Rated 4.5 stars from 2 reviews
"At only thirty years old, Mat "The Condor" Hoffman is the Tony Hawk of BMX biking. BMX, like skateboarding, is one of today's most popular extreme sports. Its popularity is enjoying the same resurgence as skateboarding, and now, thanks to BMX activists such as Mat Hoffman, BMX biking is here to stay. Mat is a 10-time BMX World Champion. Mat has brought BMX freestyle riding to a level many thought wasn't possible. He's an innovator who has accomplished amazing feats such as base-jumping his bike off 3,500-foot Norwegian cliffs and clearing 26.5 feet above a 24-foot-high vert quarter pipe-exceeding the world record of 15 feet. Since the early 1980s he has invented more than 50 tricks, many of which are being duplicated by today's riders-and a few that only he has been able to master. He began riding at the age of thirteen, and within three years was the youngest professional rider the sport had ever seen. In 1991 he started his own promotion company, Hoffman Promotions, which sponsored many riders in addition to him. He assembled a team of the best freestyle riders and began organizing tours. He started his own bike manufacturing company, Hoffman Bikes, when his riding skill surpassed what conventional BMX bikes were able to handle. And he did it all by the age of twenty. In the past 10 years, Mat has been a key player in building the sport. He's developed numerous competitions as a way for professional and amateur riders to showcase their abilities. He organized Hoffman Sports Association, which is the organizing body for the X Games. He and his riders were selected to take part in the closing ceremonies at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, GA. His action figure and finger bikes are top sellers in their field. His video game, which was released in May by Activision, is a bestseller. He has produced, directed, and hosted several television shows focused on alternative sports. Now at the age of 29 - after 14 operations, 50 broken bones, more than 50 concussions, and flatlining due to a BMX-related injury-he has retired from competition but continues to perform in demos worldwide. As he shares his stories, he unfurls the bumpy history of BMX riding."

4. The Trophy Taker
Rated 4 stars average from 20 reviews
"A serial killer is on the loose. His target? Lone Western women lured to Hong Kong by the promise of easy money. A serial killer is on the loose. His target? Lone Western women lured to Hong Kong by the promise of easy money. As The Butcher's killing spree escalates, bags of mutilated body parts are found all over the island - and more girls are disappearing. Taking on his first homicide case, Detective Johnny Mann is determined to stop The Butcher's brutal reign. Haunted by the memory of his father's death by the Triads, he's the only man who can track down a killer who's paralysing the city with fear. Georgina Johnson has left her tragic past in England to start afresh in Hong Kong. But soon her life is in peril as she is sucked into the sinister world of the city's hostess clubs. Venturing into dark and dangerous places, Mann unearths chilling evidence about the killings. And then another body is found, one which brings the murders closer to home! Bolt the doors, turn on the lights and pray for mercy - you'll be up all night with this disturbingly addictive debut from a writer being hailed as the female James Patterson."

Kindle 3.0.3 firmware preview update available

The Kindle 3.0.2 update has been available for a few days now officially (if you need instructions on how to get it click here). Meanwhile, Amazon has one again been hard at work and the 3.0.3 firmware preview is now available.

Amazon says that "this software update includes general performance improvements" meaning that there may be faster pageturns happening. If you do decide to download this preview as usual it is at your own risk but we'd love to know whether you have noticed any speed boosts or any bugs fixed.

The update is available for both US, UK and worldwide customers for both 3G and Wifi users. The download is available here along with instructions.

Update @ 15:35:
The firmware upgrade includes the following updates:

* Kernel, wifi driver, usb driver & eink controller driver updates
* Framework updates
* Browser updates

Friday 15 October 2010

Amazon announces Kindle Singles!

Amazon has announced that it will be making available short stories known as "Kindle singles." These will be between 10,000 and 30,000 words which is right in the middle of a blog post at around 1,000 words and a full novel at 50,000 words.

Amazon says that it would like to make these stories quick and easy to read, and Kindle Singles will be fantastic to read on a plane journey and easy to read on the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad Apps in quick chunks.

Rumours online point to a starting price of around 29p per story and up to £2-3. The 29p price point would be a fantastic price point but would leave little margin for Amazon themselves. 59p would put Amazon on par with the price of a book app in the iTunes App store for Apple's devices. It is also a price which would allow for many readers to make impulse buys.

"Ideas and the words to deliver them should be crafted to their natural length, not to an artificial marketing length that justifies a particular price or a certain format," said Russ Grandinetti, Vice President, Kindle Content. "With Kindle Singles, we're reaching out to publishers and accomplished writers and we're excited to see what they create."

'Kindle Singles' has no launch date as of yet, but Amazon is urging interested writers to write in to digital-publications@amazon.com.

Sunday 10 October 2010

Kindle lights, free e-books and beautiful cases!

First of all I'd like to send out a huge thank you to everyone that has subscribed to this newsletter, it's free and you can forward it to your kindle email address if you want and read it while on the move. Also, if you know anyone who has a Kindle and would like to recommend us please do! Thank you!

Book reading lights:
As I'm sure you are aware, Amazon has a fantastic collection £49.99 lighted cases available on its site in a wide range of colours - black, brown, red, green, blue and pink, though strangely no orange lighted cover. These cases are absolutely fantastic though a bit pricey for me personally, so if you haven't managed to choose a case without a light take a look at this post here including on the right-hand side column. Now that you have a case, it's time for a reading light:

1. Xtra Flex Super L.E.D. Book Light - Silver - At £10.68 delivered this is a great light that is bright enough to read comfortably and the light range does cover the whole Kindle. Also available in black here.

Rated: 4.5/5 stars average from 28 reviews.

Amazon review: "The light given off is sufficient to read by without lighting the whole room, it weighs almost nothing and clips onto a book without getting in the way, the bendy neck is really flexible and the light can stand without being clipped to anything."

2. The Really Tiny Book Light (orange) - £6.80 delivered - Winner of gift of the year 2008. Also available in blue, white, purple and grey.

Rated: 4.5/5 stars average across the different colours.

Amazon review: "I had to buy several of these before i got to keep one for myself! Now the whole family has one. Bright enough to read by, but not too bright as to disturb others trying to sleep. I have tried quite a few of this type of product and this is by far the very best. AND the batteries last ages. Great for room sharing, camping, hosteling and well ...reading in the dark !"


Free e-books:
1. Classmate Murders by Bob Moats - Synopsis: Someone is murdering woman from the class of '67 and it's up to Jim Richards, who has reluctantly just turned sixty, to stop him. Jim's life is in the dumps and then late one might he receives an email from a childhood sweetheart he hasn't seen in over 40 years, pleading for help but he doesn't get to her in time, she's been murdered.
A killer is now stalking and killing his former female classmates for unknown reasons and Jim, along with his only friend Buck, a big, mustachioed biker, they go off to track down the killer before he can get to one former classmate, Penny Wickens, a TV talk show host who Jim has just fallen for while protecting her. The killer is also murdering the women right out from under police protection, driving homicide detective Will Trapper crazy, and he slowly depends on Jim to help. There's humor, suspense, wild chases across suburban Detroit with cops, classic cars and motorcycle clubs; murder, mayhem, and a good amount of romance.

2. Ellen Under The Stairs
Synopsis: "Book #3 in the Bandworld Series. In spite of modern medicine, Ellen, beautiful young wife of John Lyon's History Department Chairman, can't seem to stem the ravages of a virus she'd contracted. Half in love with Ellen as it is, John's plan is to subject her to the healing wizardry he's discovered at the end of a static electric "stairway" in his recently purchased "haunted" house."












Kindle cases:
1. E-volve reversible neoprene sleeve case cover for Kindle -  £9.99 - This neoprene case is stunning and is reversible giving you two designs in one! It looks so good that it could be designer!
But if you are looking for designer, look no further...(well, it's the next item)







2. Diane von Furstenberg Kayley Canvas Clutch for Kindle - £68. These look really, really nice and are fantastically made. Now about that price... Though if you do want to splurge and make your Kindle feel like royalty, why not?

Sunday 3 October 2010

Free books, cheap books and Kindle Accessories

Free books:
1. Ransom X (Legacy Series) - Synopsis: "Martin Legace is a former special ops standout, once recognized as the top field interrogator in the American military complex. His study of the human mind was carried out in make-shift tents on the edge of the battlefield; he didn't write or read the book on how to break a prisoner, he simply followed his instincts, dissecting human behavior in a way that verges on autism. He had a reputation for getting anything out of anyone - "had" being the operative word. Five years ago, a random crime shattered Legace's world. Withdrawing inside himself, he built his life around the only family he had left, his teenage daughter."


2. The Ivory Tower - Synopsis: " Brian English is the whimsical, stoic center of the mysterious and deceptively named US Department of Statistics, Section 3. Armed with the dubious Ivory Tower (a psychosomatic torture device) and accompanied by his melancholy yet outgoing friend Frank Harper, he sets out to make the world a better place in his own unconventional and, perhaps, unintentionally cruel way."






3. All The Creatures Were Stirring - Donate whatever you want, it's free but support the author if you can.
Synopsis: "The prequel to “Flesh Wound” features Max Chandler and Danni McCullough, and takes place just two months after Max was shot after stumbling into the armed robbery that cost him his marriage to Claire and custody of his daughter, Sam.  Claire and Sam are with Claire’s family back east for Christmas. and Max has been invited to spend Christmas with his former Homicide partner Danni McCullough and her family at their luxurious, remote cabin deep in the northwoods.  Sounds relaxing, right?  Not so fast…"







Cheap books:
1. Containment- Just 49p and rated 4/5 starts on average by reviewers. Synopsis: "Arik Ockley is part of the first generation to be born and raised off-Earth. After a puzzling accident, Arik wakes up to find that his wife is almost three months pregnant. Since the colony's environmental systems cannot safely support any increases in population, Arik immediately resumes his work on AP, or artificial photosynthesis, in order to save the life of his unborn child. Arik's new and frantic research uncovers startling truths about the planet, and about the distorted reality the founders of the colony have constructed for Arik's entire generation. Everything Arik has ever known is called into question, and he must figure out the right path for himself, his wife, and his unborn daughter."


1. In Search of Adam - Synopsis: "Motherless, rootless and unprotected, Jude Williams' childhood is fractured by the horror and experience of sexual abuse, forcing her to exist somewhere and nowhere in-between childhood and adulthood. Caught within the limitations of her own language and trapped within a family secret, Jude becomes the consequence of her mother's tragedy. As she moves through the 1980s, Jude's life is buffeted by choice and destiny and she collects experiences that layer her personal tragedy and plunge her into the darkest of worlds. The reader will be unable to put this book down as it careers towards its shocking yet inevitable conclusion."



Kindle accessories:
1. Black Cellapod Neoprene Kindle Pouch Case - At under £7 delivered this is a great way that protect that Kindle that cost over £100. It is soft, sleek, a perfect fit and you could buy seven of these for the price of one of Amazon's lighted cases. Or just use the £43 left over for something else. This is a great deal for a well made case.

2. DURAGADGET Blue Water Resistant Neoprene Soft Zip Case/Cover For New 2010 Amazon Kindle 3 & CAR CHARGER
£10.49 delivered - This is a greart zip neoprene case similar to the one above, however for the extra price you also get a Kindle 3 car charger, so if you read a lot on the move this is a great combination deal. This case is also of slightly better quality than the one above which is already brilliant.